7.28.2009

Theme: "Why Wait?" — Theme answers are common phrases that might be preceded by the word wait (49D: Bide one's time, and a word that may precede the answers to starred clues (WAIT)).

Theme answers:

17A: *"We aren't finished here" ("IT ISN'T OVER").

53A: *"Give me another sec!" ("I'M NOT READY!").

11D: *"It's on the tip of my tongue" ("DON'T TELL ME").

28D: *"I haven't told you everything yet!" ("THERE'S MORE!").

Crosswordese 101: Some of the time you'll see EMO clued as a subgenre of punk rock, but other times, like today, you'll be forced to think about 55D: Comedian Philips. Clues might also refer to Philips as funny, which I personally think is quite an exaggeration. Sure he said some funny stuff, but the look? the voice? — let's just say I'm not a fan.

I'm still in Costa Rica and it's been a long day of hanging at the beach, reading in the hammock, eating excellent food, and swimming in the pool. As you can tell, the schedule we keep down here is super exhausting. Yesterday was actually really cool because we surprised PuzzleSon by inviting the family of one of his best friends from Virginia down here to join us. They recently moved to Mexico City, so PuzzleSon hasn't seen him since March. In fact, I've only met the kid's dad a couple of times briefly and only know his mom through Facebook. Which is pretty weird. When we met each other we were like, "Wait, what? We haven't met? But I know you!" Gotta love Facebook.

What? The puzzle? Oh, okay, we'll talk about the puzzle. I liked this one. Kinda blew right through it without really catching onto the theme until I was just about done. Nothing super sparkly, but nothing really bad either. Pretty much exactly what you want on a Tuesday.

Misc:

26A: Acela Express operator (AMTRAK). This is the express train that runs from Washington, D.C. to Boston. You may have heard of it.

29A: Mottled T-shirt (TIE-DYE). I just now realized I don't know what mottled means. Let's see ... "having colored spots or blotches." Well okay then.

30A: Broadway's George M. (COHAN). The Father of American Comedy.

49A: The LPGA's Michelle (WIE). She gave up her amateur status one week before her 16th B-DAY (10A: Kids' party occasion, briefly) and anything you read about her life as a golfer will include the word youngest many, many times.

Loved seeing 30a George M COHAN clued! A big star in vaudville, he was a great dancer, actor, and all-around performer. He wrote plays and was a major producer in New York. "Give My Regatds to Broadway" and the WWI classic "Over There" were only a few of his compositions. He earned serious actor respect by appearing in Eugene O'Neill's "Ah, Wilderness!". James Cagney won an Oscar for portraying him in a movie. Fun, easy puzzle

Smooth puzzle and a nice start to the day. Saw the Cohan bio-pic YANKEE DOODLE DANDY on the big screen at the beautifully restored Stanford Theater in Palo Alto earlier this summer. We don't usually think of James Cagney as a hoofer, but man can he dance! Cohan's real life wasn't quite as apple-pie as the movie but his legacy of song is an American treasure.

Great to see 29a TIEDYE clued! Just last week participated in a neighborhood tie-dye party with eight kids 5 through 16, 8 buckets of Rit dye, rubber bands, and about 50 white t-shirts (some old, some new}. The results were amazing and we all had fun. Maybe not as much as you Puzzle Girl. I LOVE the ocean!

I'm not sure if I'm proud (under 4 minutes - good time for me) or insulted. This puzzle way waaaay too easy. Were there ANY difficult clues?? I *did* like GO SOUTH and LUMP IN. But who doesn't know that Barbie and Ken are DOLLS? Who doesn't know that there's a FIESTA on Cinco de Mayo? I could go on... Maybe it's the norm for Tuesday, but seemed really boring today.

Thanks PG! Wish I were in Costa Rica! I'm impressed that you're keeping up with the puzzle and blog - I'd be laying on the beach all day with a good book and some sort of rum drink.

I recently learned (the hard way) how to pronounce MOET. It is not mo-way or mow-ee but moe-et. In conversation it runs together and sounds to me like mwet. Perhaps all you sophisticated readers know this already....

Also loved reference to Garfield. Just 1/2 mile from my house is an old one room school house (in NY State} where he taught school. It later for many years was the Garfield Library and soon will be home to a historical society. Great continued preservation of this historic building.

Almost headed to Seven President's Beach today (formerly "America's Summer Capital") where Garfield went to recuperate after being shot--he didn't recuperate and I didn't get to go, as my beach buds canceled! Puzzle was breezy as a summer day, altho'couldn't match @Ohio's 4 minutes! Loved EWF's "Wait" with Tower of Power "brassy" behind them! Couldn't remember "leveraged" for the buy out-shame, as Irma La Dad was a broker! Jerry Lewis' "Give-a-thon" about a month away. With all the rain (ptui!) in the NE, guess I'll have to "wait" for n' other good beach day! Tie dye and Joan Baez-40 years since Woodstock!May have to go listen to Santana, Hendrix, CSN&Y, Country Joe, Janis....And it rained then, too! Anyone see Arlo Guthrie in the NYT mag this past weekend? Happy Anniversary! As for the puzzles, "keep on keepin' on!"

GARFIELD came easily because my very long manta for going to sleep is naming the Presidents i.e. "Washinton, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, etc." I often don't get as far as Garfield. Too bad this wouldn't have worked for Michael Jackson.

@CB 1:14 On Route 2 (Eagle Mills)in the Brunswick section of Troy, NY. The library has purchased a larger building up the road and will be moving in the fall. The Brunswick Historical Society has has also been using the building and my understanding is that they will take it over.

@Orange -- and on really tough nights I can name (first names only) all the wives (first-ladies or not) married to the Presidents. Also, state capitols in alphabetical order -- Albany, Annapolis, Atlanta, Agusta, Austin, etc.) I know, I know, thats NUTS! But it works and it's better than drugs!

My father in law could have been Mel Torme's twin brother. Couldn't sing worth a damn though. Strangly, they both died in the same year, 1999. I know that the FIL was pissed bucause he was really into numbers and didn't make it to his 9/9/99 birthday. Man, he was an ornary old coot. My FIL that is, I'm sure that Mel was a sweatheart.

PG, great write up as usual. Hope you're enjoying your vacation, and to answer your question from last week - yes a "stay at home mom can still call a family vaction a vacation"! I travel around the world for work on my own but, when I bring my family it turns into a "working vacation". You're still on a vacation because someone is cleaning up after the kids, doing the dishes, cooking the meals and your with the people that you love and want to be with!

I'm with the others though on the new uprising of "ptui" - three times in ten days?! I hadn't seen it before in a puzzle in my previous decades of solving (don't want to give away my age you know).

Thanks again to you Orange and Rex for the work you do on this blog, it is appreciated and in my case looked forward to after the solve!